Box Law
by RedRupee20
Summary: When a controversial new law forces many trainers to cut down the number of poke'mon they own, dissent begins to grow in the country. Heroes and villains emerge on both sides. For Julian Lucas (OC), a young officer in the police force, a simple parking violation thrusts him into the forefront of the biggest threat to trainers and their poke'mon since team plasma.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Beginnings

Julian Lucas opened the case file. Multiple windows flashed up on his screen and he spread them apart. The biggest window was the subject's box, courtesy of the local Poke'mon center. The trainer on the screen, Brett Middleton, had reached the imposed limit of 37 Poke'mon owned and, by the records, seemed to be balancing the use of all of them rather well. He expanded a second window, to see if the trainer had bought any Poke'balls. There were a lot of potions and supplements and only five Ultraballs in two months: nothing unusual.

Julian sat back in his chair and pursed his lips. He swiveled side to side and rolled a Poke'ball back and forth between his fingers. It was getting rarer for the force to see trainers with a full 37. Most trainers had taken to having a circle of 12 companions: so much easier to stay withing the confines of the new law that way. This trainer was either, brilliantly organized and dedicated, or doing something dodgy to keep enforcement off their backs, the devil would be in the details. It was sunny outside and almost lunch time. Julian looked at the small clock on the monitor and decided the problem could wait till after his sandwich. Powering down the computer, he grabbed his jacket and clocked out.

The streets were busy. Trainers from across the country were flocking to the city for the first Deerling festival of the year. From carnivals and street markets, through to the themed Poke'mon battles in the city arena, the Deerlings always attracted a spectacular crowd.

Julian waited for two trainers on Doduo to pass by before he crossed the road to the café. Clocking out a little early meant that there was no queue for food yet, the best sandwiches were still in stock, and there were still tables himself a Panini and an apple from the rack, he claimed a seat near the window. A previous customer had left their newspaper on the adjoining table and he took the opportunity to nab it before settling down.

The front pages were filled up with the glitz and glamor of the Deerling festival. There were photos and coverage of the best and worst dressed at the inter-regional gym leaders' charity ball, betting odds for the upcoming spring battle tournament and a look at a new Poke'ball specifically designed to help kids catch their first Poke'mon. Julian flipped straight past these pages to the real news.

A Frillish believed to be behind a string of swimmer disappearances off the coast had to be put down by police after trainers were unable to safely capture it.

A school in a rural township was badly damaged and pupils left with severe burns after one student was illegally traded a volatile Magmar. The specifics of the trade were yet to be disclosed but the pupil in question had no gym badges to his name and should never have been able to trade at all without parental consent.

Finally, Julian found the news that he needed: Last Vestiges of Box Crime Die a Silent Death. The summary pertained to the cleaning of the last of the graffiti protesting the new box law. Slogans such as "Gonna keep em all" had, for a month or two, been common place: plastered over shop windows, billboards and Poke'mon centers. It seemed though, in the end, that the issue just wasn't that important. Many who had been involved in such protests and vandalism had been called 'reactionary' and it was to be remembered that most change, even positive, was naturally feared until it became the norm.

Box law: It had all started with the Team Plasma fiasco in Unova. A quasi terrorist ring: team Plasma called for all trainers everywhere to free their poke'mon and cut all ties with them. While the whole ethos was revealed as nothing more than one man's plan for world domination, its key message had struck a cord with genuinely caring trainers and, before long, Box Crime was a word. The principle was very simple. Caught Poke'mon should not be forced to languish in digitally constructed "box" worlds simply because their trainers had no use for them. Unable to grow or evolve, such creatures, it seemed, were living a half existence, likened to a kind of purgatory. Box crime was the solution. No trainer could own more than 37 Poke'mon and had to provide regular evidence of using each one.

Julian fished out a Pokeball. "Hey, can I let my friends out in here?"

The man at the counter nodded briskly, "Yeah sure, but only one please sir, the lunch rush is about to start so I can't have your entire squad eating up my space. The manager thought for a moment. Maximum, human size also; no bringing out a Snorlax."

"Relax," Julian said, unclipping a ball from his belt, feeling it expand to its full size. "It's just a Marowak." Julian thumbed the release and a cascade of light emerged from the ball bringing his friend back into the physical world. "I got you an apple Marlo, you hungry?"

The Poke'mon stretched out its arms and looked around at its surroundings. Its bone club was hung across its back from a leather baldric and Marlo took a moment to adjust it before jumping into a seat next to its master. It grabbed the apple off the table and took a large bite, spitting a pip into a nearby bin.

"It looks like our unit will be cut back soon," Julian said glumly.

Marlo grunted as he chewed the chunk of apple in its mouth. Julian could tell by the look in his companion's eye that he didn't really care.

"I know this isn't the gig you wanted but it still pays the bills. If the division makes cut backs we could find ourselves jobless…again." Julian stared morosely into his Panini. "Most of the team are already applying for other jobs on the force but Commissioner Jenny sent a memo explaining that there just aren't enough field jobs going. We could try our luck in the army, but you know how I feel about following my old man down that path."

Marlo grunted again and looked at the gathering crowd trying to buy their lunch.

Julian grabbed the remainder of his lunch and stood up. "Come on, if we're quick we can get around the park before heading back."

The central park was a great place to visit on a spring day and with the festival coming up, skeletons of tents and stalls and carnival rides were being erected around the green and many people were taking the time to admire the work.

Marlo, always business, didn't pay any heed to the colorful set up and set a brisk pace as he marched down the cobbled pavement. He had changed considerably since Julian's promotion. He had evolved from a Cubone the same day his master received his police badge. The Old Man had said he must have seen the significance of the post and, in later months, would suggest that Marlo was more committed to the job and the force than Julian.

Julian gazed at a particularly pretty flower girl, admiring the luster of her hair, when Marlo pulled on his shoulder. Coming back into the world, he followed his friend's line of sight to a truck parked illegally across the pavement. He took one last look at the girl, thinking that she might have noticed him too.

"Really Marlo? The owner's probably just nipped into a shop to grab a bite, I'm not going to give him a ticket for that! Besides, we're not traffic control." His Marowak was eying him with disdain. "You're evolution really put a stick up your backside didn't it. Fine, if it'll get you to shut up about it, I'll give it a look."

The van was part of a grocery fleet that delivered to the local shops. Its right two wheels were parked up on the curb and, annoyingly, in a no park zone to boot. As Julian inspected the vehicle, he felt stupidly overbearing. A traffic cop was probably on patrol in this area and it'd be rude to him to be doing his job for him. Marlo however was not to be trifled with.

Taking out a jotter-pad from his pocket he took down the license plate. Marlo nodded approvingly and scoped out the crowd, probably looking for anything else he could come down on: a jaywalker maybe?

"Do you smell that?" Julian asked, his nose wrinkling at the sudden odor that assailed his nostrils. Marlo's eyes narrowed and he pointed to the back of the truck. Following his partner around the back, Julian inspected the door and rankled when he put his nose to it. The stench made him dizzy and for a moment he really thought he might throw up.

Julian was grateful for his partner, who helped steady him, as he reeled back from the vehicle. As he gasped for air he looked up and saw a man in a green uniform staring at him with wide eyes. He raised his arm, assuming the stranger wanted to help but the second he acknowledged him the man turned on his heels and began to run.

Marlo baulked and drew his bone club from its sheath. With the deadly accuracy only a Poke'mon could muster, he launched it at the fleeing man. It whirred madly in the air for just a moment before finding its mark and dropping its target to the floor unconscious.

Julian had just about recovered his sense and gazed in horror at the unconscious man on the floor. "What in the name of Xerseas did you do that for? Unless there's a stash of drugs in this truck now, we are going to be kicked off the force in a heartbeat." Julian straightened up as he noticed a number of pedestrians were looking on, confused at what was happening. Right or wrong, he needed to take charge and do his job. "Marlo, cuff him now and guard him. I'm going to bust his van open and see what's inside."

Marlo nodded and ran through the onlookers with Julian's cuffs. They weren't standard issue but Marlo made him take full officers equipment everywhere, even if he was a lowly computer jockey. The Marowak shooed away the pedestrians surrounding the culprit apparent and was relieved to find him out cold. He clasped one limp wrist of the man to a nearby lamp post. Being so short, he couldn't see how his master was faring. The people were crowding round him again and he needed his next order. Picking up his bone club he made gestures with his arms for the people to back away but too many of them were filming the whole thing on their cameras and talking excitedly.

Peering through the few gaps that were available, Marlo gasped and let out a yell of horror as a yellow light grew outward from the place where the truck had been. The light was followed by a loud noise and finally the blast wave.

People ran. Fires raged. A wail of sirens mingled with the screams and shouts of the injured. Through all the madness, Marlo was just trying to find one person.

Before he opened his eyes there was pain. There was also a ringing in his ears. His jaw hurt…in fact his everything hurt in some shape or form. His memory was fuzzy. There was a pretty flower girl, a smell of dead flesh, an open door and then angry eyes blowing apart in front of him. The rest of the memory was static and thinking about it made his head hurt.

An unearthly, disinterested voice filled in the blanks.

"…Rocked the city today as resentment to the government's new Box Laws were thrust back into public light. Police officer, Julian Lucas, pictured here accepting his badge from Commissioner Jenny, appears to have uncovered plans by a yet unnamed group to bomb the Deerling festivals grand opening. In a sensational arrest, Officer Lucas took down one Brett Middleton, once a noted Poke'mon collector, who felt the pinch of the new box laws more than most. The Commissioner of Police had the following to say about the arrest.

A different voice, which Julian had heard only a few times in person took over the commentary. "Through examining Officer Lucas' computer we have confirmed that he had been investigating Mr. Middleton shortly before stepping out for lunch. From eyewitness statements, it is believed he spotted the trainer and his truck and, from his investigations, knew something to be amiss. While he had no warrant to make an arrest, Officer Lucas acted with the highest professionalism and is a credit to the uniform."

The first unearthly voice took over again. "Though Officer Lucas failed to prevent the detonation of the thirty Voltorbs rigged up to high explosive chemicals and gasses, his calls for the public to move away during the arrest ensured that he was the only human victim of the crime. Had the van gone unnoticed and made it to its ultimate destination, experts believe that the casualties could have climbed into the hundreds. Thirty Voltorb died at the scene."

The voices stopped and there were more real sounds, less divorced from the material world. There was the sound of birds outside, the rustling of the curtains. "Hello?" Julian said to the room. There were footsteps and a soft voice replied.

"Hey, it's Julian right?" It was a woman's voice, attractive and delicately inlaid with concern.

"Y…yeah," he replied in a croaky voice. "I'm parched, sorry."

"Just a moment," the voice replied. Julian could hear the sound of liquid sloshing into a container, possibly a glass. "I'm going to lean your head up a moment, let me know if it hurts."

There was a lot of pain but Julian didn't dare complain, he needed the drink. The feel of it washing down his throat was heaven. He opened his eyes and noticed immediately something was wrong. He tried moving his hand up to his face. A smooth but firm hand grabbed him by the arm and held it down. "You shouldn't try to move," the voice said soothingly.

Julian was able to work out what was going on even if he couldn't see his face. He could feel the tightness of the bandages over the right side of his head. He opened his eyes. One looked out to see a beautiful woman with lustrous red hair looking at him with the kind of concern one might give the dying; the other eye…

The other eye was dead.

"I lost my eye? In…in the explosion they were talking about?"

The woman bit her lip and nodded.

Julian felt his heart rate climbing, he was starting to sweat. "What else? What else has happened to me?"

The woman held his arm tighter. "I'll…I'll tell you but you have to calm down first.

Julian could hear the air rushing in and out of his nostrils and tried his best to keep his breathing steady. He focused on the woman with the red hair. She was truly stunning. His breathing relaxed as he let himself indulge in her looks. "Okay, please tell me now."

The woman's eyes started to water. "A piece of metal hit your face just over your right eye…" she paused, choking on the words. Her grief made her look somehow even lovelier and Julian began to wish he had not forced her into speech. "You'll have a scar over your face and you won't be able to see out of your right eye anymore. Your right hand too had to be amputated and the doctors say there'll be a lot of scarring across your right hand side."

Julian found himself more surprised by his calm than by the news itself. Perhaps it helped that it came from a beautiful woman, or maybe he was in shock. The injuries just rolled off of him as though the woman were doing something as ordinary as reading a grocery list.

He could feel her fingers caressing his arm, stroking it like he were some wounded pet. "I…I just want you to know…" she continued in broken speech. "I thought that was really brave what you did out there. I was there you know. You told us all to back off and if you hadn't waved us clear when you did…" She broke off into soft tears.

"You… you were the flower girl with the beautiful hair." Julian said.

The girl's tears turned momentarily into sad laughter, "Yes, that was me. I saw you with Marlo."

"Marlo! Is he…?"

The girl had to press down on his chest again to stop him from trying to get up. "Marlo's fine. Your other Poke'mon too: their balls were undamaged." The girl looked down at the officer and did her best to smile. "I'm Catherine by the way."

"Julian…pleasure's all mine,"

The girl looked to the door and her smile faded. "There's a nurse coming. I'm really sorry but they wouldn't let me travel with you to the hospital unless I knew you." She looked back down with another guilty smile. "I told them you were my boyfriend."

Julian looked up at her with his one good eye. "What?"

"I'm sorry. I just felt you needed someone to be with you when you woke up. I didn't want you to wake up alone after you saved my life."

The nurse came into the room and surveyed the scene. "Mr Lucas, you're awake." She looked to Catherine eying her suspiciously. "Um, your girlfriends been with you for the past few days, but don't worry, we've been keeping a close eye on her." Already Julian understood that the nurses knew, or had learned Catherine had been lying. "Do you want some alone time Mr. Lucas or…"

Julian looked at the flower girl by his bed side. "Do you need time to sleep?" he asked hesitantly. "I don't want you worrying about me if you've been awake for…days."

Catherine smiled and shook her head. "I'd rather stay here with you if that's okay."

Julian chewed his lip for a moment as he thought it over. "She's okay, as long as she's not too exhausted."

"Very well," I'll send the doctor down to see you shortly and the Commissioner of Police will likely want to see you too…you've become quite the celebrity while you've been asleep."

_Author's Notes. _

_Hi. I've only recently started writing fan fictions and posting them on here and this is only my second story I've attempted. I'm currently writing a Legend of Zelda fan fic called 'The Hero's Mask' but as I've gotten to enjoy writing fan fiction more and more I have decided to try juggling two stories at once. _

_I hope you've enjoyed this first chapter for Julian Lucas. Please send me your thoughts about this piece. _

_I have labelled this piece as T but I may change it later on. If anyone believes at any point that it should be marked up please let me know and I will change it._

_Thanks for reading. _


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Fallout

Time had passed, Julian could not say how much but it was definitely night. The last thing he remembered was the girl, Catherine, by his bedside thanking him for letting her stay: then nothing. He opened his eyes, or rather: eye and his injuries, as well as how he sustained them, came flooding back into his mind. He blinked twice to check the world was real then lifted his arm up.

Julian's eye widened and he felt his heart quicken in his chest as he gazed on the weird sight. There was a stump, neatly wrapped up in a thin bandage. In the obscure dark of night, it looked to all the world like a maypole. The most horrible part was that Julian could still feel his fingers; he wanted to flex them, ball them up into a fist and shake them. Despite being able to see the gap where his hand should be, he just couldn't stop himself from feeling its presence. He continued trying to wiggle his fingers, as though imagination alone would bring them back.

A figure moved past Julian's peripheral vision and, once again, he found himself being forced back down on to the bed by a strong hand, this time masculine. Julian tried desperately to settle and followed the hand pinning him up to its owner.

"Dad?"

Julian liked to joke that the Colonel didn't age well; by which he meant, he never seemed to age at all. A lifetime of dedicated military service had kept him looking thirty five well into his fifties. He had always looked far healthier than his son, even in his youth. In the present light, that situation was unlikely to change. He said nothing, as he waited for his son to relax and calm down, staring at him with those intense brown eyes that always seemed to sing of delayed expectation.

"Julian?" he said in his officer's voice. "Julian can I let you go now, are you right in the head now soldier?"

Julian took two more gulps of air, to be on the safe side, then gazed at his old man in annoyance. "Dad, how many times do I have to tell you, I am a police officer not a soldier!"

The old man smiled, his greying mustache arching a little in amusement. Somehow, even his laughter seemed condescending. "I don't think you're even that anymore. Your mother's been busy collecting all the newspapers from the last few days. I've got enough front page bulletins and pictures of you that I'm actually starting to forget I wasn't at that damn lorry with you."

Julian looked down at his stump again. "Has Mum been in to see me?"

"No." The old man looked seriously out the window. "She knows about your injuries but I'm not sure she's ready for the whole reality of it yet. Let's wait until you've healed up a bit." He sighed and slouched his shoulders: not a common sight. "That stunt was really dumb you know. If you knew that man was dodgy you never should have opened up his van without calling in backup."

Julian grimaced. "You're saying I should have known it was a rig of Voltorb and explosives in there, how could I have?"

The Colonel looked at him perplexed. "Well, he was the guy you were investigating before you went out to lunch. You ordered Marlo to hit him with his bone club the moment you saw him. You can't have done all that and tell me you didn't think about what the man was trying to hide in that truck."

Julian tried to focus his mind back. He didn't remember any of this. He was just doing a parking ticket and the driver rabbited when he saw him. Marlo had thrown the bone club...he remembered that much. Julian remained silent.

"It's your damn Eevee all over again," the Colonel continued. This was a lecture Julian had heard before. How were parents so good at repeating the same life lessons over and over again? "When we gave you the money to buy a stone for it, what was it we told you?"

Julian didn't bother to answer, they both remembered the fiasco well enough, partly because his Dad liked to bring it up once every few months.

"We told you to take your time thinking the step over and really put consideration into how you wanted your poke'mon to work for you. And instead of listening to us, what did you do? You went to the shop in less than a week, gave the thing a Thunderstone you picked randomly for it, and then regretted the decision straight away."

"I was just a kid Dad, it was exciting to have one of my poke'mon evolve; none of the others had."

"That precisely my point," The Old Man continued without missing a beat. "I'm sure it was very exciting to find your suspect by chance on your lunch break, but look where it's gotten you."

Julian rubbed his temples which were beginning to throb. "It wasn't like that at all Dad," he complained through gritted teeth.

The Colonel's face softened. "Look Son," he said in the voice he used whenever he remembered that his flesh and blood was not one of his recruits. "I don't want you to think for a minute that I am not proud for what you did out there. But when you're awake enough to watch the news and read the papers, well, you'll have more than enough people celebrating your courageousness. I'll leave all of that to your Mum and your fans, I've got to keep your feet on the ground and get you to shape up, before you do something else reckless."

Julian lay back in his bed. Everything being said was so surreal, most particularly because it didn't seem to have happened to him. "Did you really just say fans?"

The Colonel nodded with a smirk. "Yes. The hospital has a blanket policy that they will only permit family and friends to give presents and gifts. So your random admirers have simply been dumping bouquets and teddy bears outside the entrance or tying them to the gate posts. Damn well counts as littering, if you ask me. The saddest part is you've been in and out of consciousness for about three, four days now, so most of the flowers are wilting and you never even saw them."

Julian's head was spinning and he couldn't tell if it was nausea or just an inability to process information. Something about his Dad's words jogged his memory though. "When I first woke up, there was a girl here...?"

The Colonel's face returned to stoic business. "Ah yes, her… She was masquerading to the hospital staff that she was your girlfriend or some such, if you can believe it. When I came by, I confronted her immediately and had her thrown out. One of the staff said you'd okayed the girl but I reminded them that you'd only just come round from a traumatic experience and were in no position to handle your own affairs."

Julian sighed in frustration. 'Right, thanks Dad!"

"Hey, don't take that sarcastic tone with me young man. She could have been anyone: an undercover reporter; some desperate media wannabe, wanting to pass off as a friend so she could get on TV."

"Well has she, been on TV I mean?"

"I never gave her the chance," the old man said with a hint of personal triumph. "When I confronted her on her lies, I threatened to take legal action as your executor and have a restraining order put against her, unless she signed a non-disclosure agreement."

"And she signed it?"

"In a heartbeat."

Julian sighed. "Once again, thanks Dad."

"Don't mention it," the old man replied, ignoring the less than convincing tone in his son's voice. "It's late. I promised your mother and the nurses that I'd let them know if you came round again. I imagine you'll be starting your physiotherapy tomorrow. So, if I were you I'd try and go back to sleep." He patted his son on the chest two times. "It's good to have you back in the land of the living."

"Yeah, thanks Dad." Julian replied with more sincerity.

The Colonel got up from the side of the bed, grabbed his beret from the table and walked neatly out of the room. He turned once, just before he closed the door. "If you can't sleep, there's an on-call button. The staff have a pretty good Hypno, who will help you get to sleep quickly." Then the door closed.

Alone at last, Julian reached over to the bedside table where his poke'balls were neatly laid out. Immediately, he was reminded of his new situation as his wrist stump bumped uselessly against the round ball, knocking it to the floor. The room lit up for a brief dazzling moment and then Marlo was stood at the end of the bed.

The Marowak shifted uncomfortably on his feet and hung his head low, to avoid looking directly at his master.

"I knew if I listened to you on that damn van I'd never get back into work before my lunch break ended."

Marlo lifted his head a little and shuffled up the covers to sit by his master's side. He took out his bone club and used it to pull a paper on the other nightstand closer. Grabbing it with his two hands he held the front page up for Julian to read.

City Holds Midnight Vigil For Hero Cop in Hospital.

"Yes, and how's that supposed to make me feel better?" Julian asked ripping the sheet from Marlo's hand. "For one thing, I can only see out of one eye now and reading…the perspective is weird as…" Julian stopped himself at the irrelevance of this minor point. "More importantly: I'm not a hero cop. We were issuing a damned parking ticket. I didn't even recognize the driver as the same man from my investigation sheet. Hell, if you hadn't brought him down with your club, which, by the way, I never ordered you to do, he'd have gotten away. And in the end, I still ended up blowing myself up and almost killing a lot of people. So tell me Marlo, just what exactly have I done to be proud of here?"

Marlo looked at his owner defiantly and grabbed something else from the table: Julian's badge.

Julian grimaced, "Just doing my job huh?" he lay back on the soft pillow. He glanced down at his stump and used his left hand to trace a line over the bandage on his face. "After this, I wonder if I'll even have a job to go to. Not sure the force has much need for a one eyed, one handed computer jockey." He bit his lip and studied his stump, feeling it with his left hand. "That girl, Catherine, the one who came in with me… What did you think of her? Do…do you think she had some kind of angle for posing as my girlfriend?"

Marlo shrugged his shoulders, the question was seemingly irrelevant to him. "Right, thanks pal." He looked at the clock on the wall. "Get back in your ball, Marlo. I want to get out of here."

The corridor was empty and Julian guessed, being night time, there'd not be too many nurses about. The sign on the ward said private care, a good indication that it had some kind of exclusivity. The elevator was just down the corridor. Julian found he couldn't run. He hobbled as best he could, his legs like jelly after days of disuse. The scars on his right leg sang as he walked and he could feel the scabs ripping apart. Stitches from several wounds were rubbing painfully. As he walked, he found he had to lean his body against the side wall to keep his balance.

The elevator was just a little further. The whole corridor was bathed in a dim yellow glow, to give the ward an appropriate dark for night. As he approached the lift however, the corridor suddenly lit up in bright, white lights. Julian was dazzled by the brilliant flashes that assailed him, just as he let go of the wall. He tottered for a moment on his feet. He put his stump arm over his face, to shield himself from the glare.

The lights emanated from the far door at the end of the ward. A mini horde of people, with cameras and cell phones, were now pressing up against the glass, taking picture after picture of him in his bandages and hospital gown. Julian tried to take a step back, to retreat from them, but his legs were already giving out. He keeled over on to the cold floor. The flood of flash photography continued to assail him as an alarm on the wards wall started to sound.

Two nurses, as well as a Machoke, appeared seemingly out of nowhere. The muscly Poke'mon ran towards the door, where the photos were still being taken relentlessly, and started to block the view with his body. The two nurses rushed straight to Julian and lifted him up by the shoulders, both talking to him and asking questions.

Julian couldn't hear what was being said, he was preoccupied with a single, horrifying thought that he'd have to get used to: there was no getting out of this.

_Author's notes _

_Thanks for reading this second chapter, I hope you're enjoying the story so far. _

_The first person to review this story noted, and I believe others might too, that in the anime Boxes are very pleasant places to live and Poke'mon seem far happier there than in the real world. I feel at this point I should answer this question by explaining a little of my vision for the story. _

_I am not basing this story off of the anime but trying to imagine a more stark and 'real' (for want of a better word) poke'mon world where things aren't as rosy as the series often depicts. This will likely lead to more discrepancies from the known canon in the future and aspects of the story will likely be different, sometimes drastically so, from the anime and game. I hope you are willing to bear with this. _

_I have only been writing on this site for three weeks now and this is only my second story, so all reviews, critique and thoughts on how I'm doing are greatly appreciated. And hey, if you like this maybe check out my other story I'm writing: "The Hero's Mask" for the Legend of Zelda. _

_Once again, thanks for reading. _


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Leaving the Cocoon

Julian couldn't sleep; tomorrow would be his first time back on the outside. Even from the third floor, and with the world obscured in darkness, he could make out the flowers and presents left at the hospital gates and it unsettled him to think that they were all somehow for him and that they were still piling up nearly two weeks after he had come to.

There were still a handful of people, journalists and film crews, milling around the entrance, ambushing any one exiting the building. There had been a buzz of activity around them a few hours ago over something, but the sharks had calmed down since then and taken to swimming in the cold night air, taking long gulps from their many cups of coffee.

Julian looked along near empty road beyond and noticed two people set apart from the other reporters. These two had no film crew or Poke'mon around them, but stood in the gap between two alleyways, just out of sight of anyone walking by. They never seemed to look up, or in any particular direction, they just stood side by side, talking and looking straight ahead at something Julian could only guess at. They looked a little like bodyguards, just they didn't seem to be guarding anyone…unless it was the alleyway itself.

Julian closed the blinds up completely and walked over to the dimmer switch. He needed to practice doing things with his left hand and stood at the switch an extra second before putting his hand out and turning up the light to a full daytime glare.

It had been almost a full fortnight since he had woken up and, thanks to the iron fisted moratorium on information, the outside world had heard little of his condition. The pictures of him trying to discharge himself had, of course, been front page news and the tabloids embroidered a stirring tale of how Julian Lucas, the embodiment of the law, was trying to get back to work.

Security in the hospital had been tightened as a result of the fiasco and Julian began to welcome the safety the hospital walls afforded. Physiotherapy kept him busy and being shut away was a merciful buffer from the strange goings on outside. His stitches were all out and, though his right side was littered in long line scars of various depths, he found walking and moving manageable.

The hard part was getting used to using his one hand, and the strange lack of depth perception that came from missing one eye. The worst exercises and sadly the most frequent, were those of penmanship. Practicing writing, the doctors said, was a good way of strengthening the muscles in his left hand, and of increasing the dexterity. Seeing his illiterate scrawl, scarcely to be distinguished from a child's, was maddening.

"How long do you think it takes for stun spore to wear off?" the larger of the two gentleman asked.

"Did you have some date tonight Lieutenant?" his counterpart asked. "I can only be thankful that we've regained the faculty of speech. It is so much easier to pass the time now we can chit chat."

The larger man tried to turn his head again but failed. "Are you sure we can't just call someone for help?"

"Absolutely not. The only people around to help us are journalists and news crews and imagine how they would react to two innocent men being mysteriously paralyzed right by the hero of The Deerling festival's place of care."

The larger man grunted. "There was a show I wanted to watch tonight."

"Well then, maybe that'll teach you to set your TV to record shows when you're out on the job."

"Do you think she's still trying to see him?"

"Undoubtedly, Lieutenant. She's a patient creature though, she can wait till the caterpie leaves its cocoon."

The larger man grunted again. "I wish you wouldn't be so damn prosy, just answer questions properly."

"Although I would love to take such high praise, I'd hardly call my little metaphor prosy. I think…"

The larger man groaned. "Why couldn't she have hit you with a sleep powder?"

Julian found his uniform oddly loose as he put it on. It was nice to be in something warmer and less open than a hospital gown. Buckling his trousers, however, revealed how much weight he'd lost. The Commissioner would be arriving soon and had sent Julian a full briefing on how his release would be handled. From what the doctor's had suggested, she was irked to have not been allowed to visit sooner but, after Julian's attempted escape, the doctors had forbade any visitors or contact with the outside world in a bid to keep him calm. Putting on his dress jacket he listened carefully as the doctor droned on.

"The police Commissioner will lead you out of the building and there will be a short press conference, strictly for photos to show you've been released. Reporters may try to ask questions; don't answer them, I don't want your nerves taxed and the commissioner doesn't want you saying anything until you've been officially debriefed. If the questions become too much, just say you're glad to be out and all you want is to get back to your home. Make sense?"

Julian nodded.

"The commissioner also expressed a wish that you spend a few minutes looking at the cards and flower. You don't need to do anything special, just read a few of them and let the paparazzi take some shots. When that's done you're home free and you'll be driven to your house."

Julian looked out the window. Quite a crowd had gathered and, curiously, the two men were still stood in alleyway, still looking forward.

"Mr. Lucas? Are you ready?"

Commissioner Jenny was waiting by the elevator. She held her cap under her arm and pursed her lips as she looked out on the gathering throng. She had a reputation of being an overly familiar Commissioner, unafraid of mixing with her officers. Even so, Julian felt nervous approaching his boss for only the second time.

"Commissioner," he acknowledged, standing to attention and saluting.

"At ease officer," she said with a genuine smile. She turned from the window and looked him up and down. "How do you feel?"

"I want to get this bandage off my head, but the doctors said I should keep it on for the cameras."

The Commissioner nodded. "Yes, I'm afraid there are a team of people working behind the scenes who are very eager to promote your image in a particular fashion. You might find yourself a slave to their whims for a while yet. Do you have your Marowak, Marlo with you? He was at the arrest with you, it'd be good for him to be out and present with you when we step out."

Julian nodded and unclipped Marlo's ball from his belt. A wave of light shone out and then he was there.

Jenny knelt down and looked the creature in the eye. "It's a pleasure to meet you officer Marlo."

The Marowak gave a formal bow then looked up to Julian for instruction. The Commissioner ushered them both into the elevator.

"Do you have anyone waiting for you at home?"

Julian shook his head, "No Ma'am, not that I know of. My father will likely have returned to his unit and my mother needs time before she sees me like this."

Jenny nodded, "I imagine it must be very trying for her. Your father must be proud though. I only know the Colonel by reputation, but I doubt he could find a finer son than you."

Julian bit his lip thinking back to the old man's visit two weeks earlier.

"And no girlfriend to speak of?" the Commissioner continued.

"No Ma'am, and considering the state I am in that's probably for the best."

Jenny looked at him with genuine sympathy, her officer's face retreating. "You mustn't let your scars define you officer." She smiled, "Besides, with the work our P.R boys have been doing on you and the publics' reaction to your heroism, it wouldn't surprise me if you're beating off women with a stick; you may wish you'd stayed in the hospital."

Julian smiled bashfully and fiddled with the loose bit of bandage on his stump. "Ma'am there was one girl, she came with me in the ambulance…"

"Oh, the pretty Red Head?" Jenny smiled ruefully. "Yes, the nurses said you'd seemed quite smitten with her."

"Do you know anything about her, Ma'am? My father…"

"Chased her off premises I know. I hate to say it Julian, but he did a good job. That girl caused quite a headache for the investigation team. Because she went with you in the ambulance we almost missed her when taking witness statements."

"You mean you've seen her?"

Jenny looked at him with a serious expression. "Yes, I've seen her. I interviewed her personally after we found out her name wasn't really Catherine."

The elevator pinged for the ground floor. Jenny pushed the stop button to keep the door shut for a moment. "We can discuss her and other matters later, but until we're properly debriefed I need you to put her out of your mind, and let me know if she makes contact with you."

Julian looked down at Marlo then back to the Commissioner. "Yes, Ma'am as you say."

"Butterfree, has it started yet?" The purple insect looked at the screen and gave a little screech in response.

Its owner emerged from the shower, her red hair still a little damp. She wore plain pink pyjama shorts and a white vest top and held a blue towel against her head trying to dry it off as she searched for the remote to turn up the volume. She sat down cross legged on the sofa and leaned forward with anticipation, placing the remote on the pile of Newspaper clippings she'd diligently collected over the last weeks.

"He looks so sweet up there on that stage, like a Deerling in headlights!" She watched in fascination as Julian was brought up to the podium. He was being lead by the commissioner of Police and seemed to be relying on her to talk him through every thing he was meant to do. He kept his head down, no eye contact, trying to keep a low profile. It was a futile gesture when the whole ceremony was for him.

"Do you think he's being shy because of his injuries, or is shyness just a part of his character?" she asked biting her bottom lip. "I don't know Butterfree, but he just doesn't seem the type to take out a terror ring singlehanded. He's so…fascinating." Watching as he was presented to the mayor, she winced in sympathy as Julian, on instinct, put out his stump arm. The crowd were unsure whether to laugh it off or stay quiet. A few hung their heads or pretended to notice something else nearby as he recovered. Julian put out his left hand and the ceremony continued as though nothing happened. She smiled and relaxed as Julian stood awkwardly in the back ground. The mayor was giving a long, excited introduction, like some MC at a poke'mon battle. The man extolled all the virtues that exemplified Julian Lucas as an officer. "Look at the way he fidgets every time they say something about him; It's so sad. He must really hate all this attention. It's nice to see a hero who isn't big headed about what they did. I'd say…hmm, he actually seems embarrassed more than anything, like he's going to apologise at any moment."

The camera on screen shifted and did a sweep of the crowd. The red head leaned back on the couch and clutched a pillow as she looked out on Julian's adoring fans. "Woah, hold up a minute! Butterfree, throw me the remote. The giant bug fluttered down to the table and launched the control to its mistress. Despite the bad throw, the woman grabbed it deftly and thumbed the rewind button.

"Well, well, Butterfree look who we have here!" The bug swivelled round and its wings flapped madly in glee as it noticed the two men standing in the back of the crowd. The Red head leaned forward again and scratched her little bug on the head causing it to hum contently. "What time did we freeze those guys, half eight last night? I think that must be a new record for you, over 15 hours paralyzed."

There was a knock at the door. Springing out of her chair in a flash, the girl muted the tv and went to the door on silent steps. She had a bag on the table and she grabbed it as she looked through the peep hole. It was her neighbour. She let the gas mask fall back to the bottom of her bag as she opened up.

"Hi Janie, you watching the news too?"

"Was going to ask to see it with you, I want to hear all about your time with your boyfriend!"

The Red head forced a giggle. "Come on in, I'll get you a cup of tea."

_Author's Notes. _

_Hi, thanks for reading my fan fic. This is only second attempt at story writing on this site, so please do send me your thoughts and reviews on how I'm doing. All feedback is very welcome. _

_To anyone who has been reading from the start, I have made a few updates to the first chapter and may make a few to chapter two in the next few days. The plot won't change because of these changes, I just want to make the narrative a little more punchy. _

_Thanks for reading and let me know what you think of the story so far. _


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